A Nightmare Awakened
by fleafygreen
Summary: The world is littered with urban legends and hollow myths of monsters, misshapen atrocities, and creatures that are as unknown as the deepest depths of the ocean. Among the scores of these stories, the tale of how one supernatural being intruded upon a sacred holiday is just beginning to be investigated-and by the only girl who can give it a happy ending.


Chapter One

Another Urban Legend

Once upon a time there were two special days. And there were two powerful spirits who governed these holidays. The ancient cultures were heavily invested in these special days and the spirits who ruled over them, especially the ancient Celts, who were the first to heavily implement these special days into their culture. One of these special days focused around a celebration of the Winter Solstice, the cold, and the hibernation of the world. The other focused on the dying of the nature that surrounded the people, the thinning of the veil between those that live and those who have passed, and the banishing of evil spirits. Many names came and went for these two special days, but they are known today as the holidays Christmas and Halloween.

From the beginning, Christmas had been ruled and cared for by the jolly spirit of Winter, known through the ages as Kris Kringle, Saint Nick, but most commonly, Santa Claus, and is still ruled by him to this day. However, the same could not be said for Halloween. Halloween proved to be impetuous holiday; it went through lulls and misunderstandings to whether it was a benevolent or malevolent holiday, and because of this, it passed through many hands. Regardless, as the holidays went through their own business, and other holidays came to join them, they never once crossed paths…until that one, fateful night. You probably already know the story, though. Over the past few years, the story of that night seems to have found itself categorized as just another urban legend, but one thing separates this story from all the others; it actually happened. Most have forgotten, others have ignored, but some have remembered and kept it as part of a reverence to the Halloween holiday.

Santa Claus has always been a household holiday name, but that night the name Jack Skellington made its way into the throws of holiday history. No one quite knows the reason, though. Some say he was an unstable spirit, who became jealous of Santa Claus's fame, and attempted to steal it from him by hijacking the Christmas holiday. Others say that he is a malevolent spirit, angered by the very little attention his holiday gets in comparison to Christmas, and so sought to destroy it altogether. But then there are some who entirely disagree with both ideas, and instead insist that Jack Skellington is a most benevolent spirit of Halloween, and perhaps only sought to help Santa Claus during his most busy time of year. No one knows for sure, but many have their own opinion about it, and stick to it. And of the few who care to remember, there was one who made absolute sure to never forget…

It was a cold, wintery night in December of 1993; the kind of night perfect for hot chocolate and only pretending to sleep, so as to catch a glimpse of the elusive Santa Claus. And she had that very idea in mind that night. Her older brother had told her that Santa did not exist, but being the hard-headed five-year-old she was, she was determined to prove him wrong. They had just moved into these new condominium homes, which meant the neighbors were a bit closer than one might prefer, but it was on this night that that seemed to come in handy, as she began to hear thumps on her neighbor's roofs, she felt her excitement rise. She had always assumed she was right about Santa, but it was still unbelievable that she actually was. She was so thrilled about the bumps she heard on the roofs, that she almost missed the screaming that followed. It was the type of screams you would expect to hear on Halloween, when people in frightening costumes attempted to catch you off your guard; it wasn't altogether dangerous sounding, but to a five-year old, a scream is scary regardless. However, being an incurably curious child, she began to make her planned descent into her living room when she heard the thumps reach her roof.

She moved slowly and cautiously, her hands gingerly touching the handrails that trailed along the stairs. She could hear whoever it was shifting their way through her living room. She continued slowly with cautious bravery, knowing she could call for her parents at any time. One of the steps creaked softly, and she stopped dead in her tracks, grasping her breath within her chest; however, the figure in the living did not seem to take notice, and she continued on until she was at the very edge of the living room. As she peered in, she realized that the figure in the living room was not Santa, although it was dressed like him. It was too tall, too thin, and creeped like a stalker in the night, trying to remain as quiet as possible. She felt fear clutch within her chest, and as she was about to shout for her mom and dad, the thing turned around, and she caught full blast of what this creature was. It was a skeleton; walking on its own, stalking about the room, dropping gifts in stockings, and laying presents around the tree. Far from what was expected, the girl's fear actually began to leave her, for as she looked into his face, she became enchanted, fixated on his movements. She did not notice, however, that she was slowly inching more and more into the living room, and it was at that time that he noticed her.

Their eyes locked, and neither said anything for a moment. Finally, he broke the silence.

"Well, hello, little one. What are you doing out of bed so late?" he said in a soft, surprisingly charming voice. All she could do was shrug. He grinned and put a finger to his chin.

"I am fairly certain that you should be in bed, sleeping, waiting to open your presents in the morning!" he chuckled. She felt herself become ashamed, no longer questioning who this twisted version of Santa was, but rather more upset that she had disappointed him by not waiting for her presents until morning, and she felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. Suddenly, his expression went from amused to soft and apologetic. He knelt down to her, and gently wiped away a tear from her cheek.

"I suppose I cannot blame you for being excited, little one. Here, let me just check my bag, for I believe I have a special present stowed away in there just for you." He turned, and shuffled through his bag for a moment or two, before turning, smiling, and handing her a small, jack-o-lantern, that was no bigger than a teacup.

"You see the little leaf on the stem there?" he asked. She nodded. "If you push it down, the light inside the pumpkin turns on, see? And a little song starts playing!" She grinned as the little music box like song began to play softly. He smiled back.

"You take very good care of that, okay? Promise?" he asked. She nodded. He grinned, and made his way back to the chimney.

"Santa?" she asked, just as he was leaving. He looked at her. She felt herself blush.

"Please don't forget to come back next year." She felt herself mumble. He looked at her curiously, but then grinned. He nodded. "Promise?" she asked. He nodded again and then he disappeared.

And the little girl never forgot that night. And even though he never did return, she always held out a little hope every year that he just might come back again, but until then, she had her little musical pumpkin nightlight keeping her company until he returned.


End file.
